The two dominant insurance groups, Insurance Australia and QBE, have sent letters to comparison websites including JustEzi.com.au and Ratecity.com.au, demanding they remove references to their car insurance products and links to their brands' websites, the
Sydney Morning Herald reports.
The insurers told the newspaper they had taken this action because comparison websites cannot provide accurate prices for their products as they don't have the relevant information.
With a combined market share in the vicinity of 70 per cent, the two insurance groups have endeavoured to stave off competition resulting from the recent surge in choice in retail insurance products by obstructing the business models of comparison websites.
The two insurers have also established alternative brands to promote alongside those supported by challengers such as Hollard and Auto & General. The latter's local partners include Virgin Money and Australia Post. Hollard operates through Real Insurance.
The Sydney Morning Herald also cites "internal research" by investment bank JPMorgan that concludes that A$1.8 billion of commercial and personal insurance premiums are ''at risk'' from easier access to comparison websites and other "contestable platforms".
The research indicated QBE Insurance could lose $414 million in commercial premiums, while Suncorp and Insurance Australia Group could lose $378 million and $244 million, respectively, according to the newspaper report.